The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1887-06-15
NEW cANNIBAL TRIBES.
The Discoveries of Captain Van Geie
Along the Great Mobangi River.



Last fall the Congo State sent Captain
Van Gele, one Of SANKEY'S favorite officers,
in the steamer Henry Reed to make fur
ther explorations upon the Mobangi River,
the great northern allluent of the Congo,
whose importance Mr.. Grenfell was the
first to discover. Van Gele did not ascend
the river quite as tar as Grenfell, being
prevented by rapids through which Gren.
fell had been able to push ms steamer at
low water when the current was slower.
He, however, took time 10 explore, while
Grenfells journey was nothing more
than hurried reconnaissance. Van Gele
made some very interesting discoveries.
He found, for instance, three little tribu.
taIies, up which he pushed his steamer for
q total distance of 207 miles. 1t is only
three years since Stanley estimated that the
MobaDgi itself added only about $50 miles
to the navigable waters of the Congo basin.
Now the problem is, whether the Mobangi
or the kassai deserves distinction as the
Congo's greatest tributary.
On the Nghiri affluent Of the river, and
also on the Mobangi, about 800 miles from
its mouth Van Gele found the most densely
populated districts he had seen in Africa.
The left bank of the great river was an IN
interrupted succession of villages for about
seventy miles. Those who imagine that
the depths Of Africa are an almost voiceless
count of the animation and hustle he wit
messed all along this populous river.
The scene on the river IN the morning,
he says, is one of extraordinary animation
he often met as many as 500 canoes swiftly
ploughing through the water. The canoes
were chiefly filled with women and chill
dren. The women were leaving the villages
to go to the fields and begin the agricul-
tural lab0rs of the day. Other parties in
rr~or mt for ha fab,
nets, to gather in the fnny harvest that
had collected since the previous day. The
river swarms with fish, the land yields rich
returns of all tropical produce, and thou
sands of natives along the river do not
know what famine means. They have, be-
sides, food resources upon which most of
the world can not count, as these natives
are among the greatest Of cannibals.
Quite number Of men accompany the
women to the fields, but not to take part in
tilliDg the soil. They let the women mo-
nopollze the rude iron hoes, while the men
stand around with weapons IN their hands
to protect the toilers. Without protection
there is always danger that the women will
be surprised and dragged off by hostile
trihss.
All these river tribes send expeditions
against one another for the sole purpose of
procuring victims for their cannibal feasts.
Captain Van Gele says that all the enemies
they kill in battle are eaten, and that the
same fate soon overtakes the prisoners they
carry home with them. Before the explor-
alton of the Congo Valley the belief was
widespread that cannibalism had greatly
decreased, and that there were compare
lively few people who were still addicted
70 the horrid practice. In all his travels,
Livingstone never saw cannibal tribe with
the possible exception of the Mauyema.
But the opening up Of the Congo basin has
revealed the fact that the world never
knew before where cannlbalism was most
prevalent. There are undoubtedly hun
dIeds of thousands of people among whom
cannibalism is confirmed and most cher
isbed habit.
Captain Van Gele says that nowhere in
| Africa has he seen fisheries of equal extent
except at Stanley Falls. The stakes mark
ing the position of the nets cover many
acres. All these tribes are tall and power
full, and in form they are splendid speci-
mems of physical beauty.